Fourth to waldo a



(No Model.)

1- B. WILLIAMS.

FOLDING BED.

No. 316,714. latented Apr. 28, 1885.

11 i r. a

4 idr Y llNiTE Frames PATENT rricn.

FITZALLAN B. l/VILLIAMS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE- FOURTH TO WVALDO A. YVILLIAMS, OF SAME PLACE.

FOLDING BED.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 316,714, dated April 28, 1885. Application filed May 31, 1883. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FITZALLAN B. WIL- LIAMS, of Chicago, State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Folding Beds, of which the following is a specification.

The invention consists in the combinations of parts hereinafter described and claimed, and the accompanying drawings illustrate the same.

Figure l a central longitudinal section of a folding bed open containing the invention. Fig.2 shows a plan of the swinging portion and a horizontal section of the stationary portion on lineffof Fig.1. Fig. 3 is a side view of a portion of the upright or stationary and the folding portions, showing the manner of connecting the head-board with the folding portion. Fig. 4. is a side elevation of the bed closed.

The folding portion or frame consists of the side rails, A, and the head and foot pieces A, secured together in the usual manner and provided with a bottom, A.

The upright or stationary frame consists of the side pieces, 13, secured together at the top and bottom by the crosspieces B and the headboard B, which extends from the top of the head-piece A upward and slides up and down in opening and closing the bed.

Near the bottom of the uprights B on their inside I attach rests or supports 0, the upper edges of which between the points 0 c are curved in the form of the segment of a circle, and at c the curve being so extended as to form a socket. j ect horizontally from the inner vertical surface of the upright about an inch, and the bottom edges of the side rails are placed thereon. The bottoms of the side rails are curved upward from about the center of the segmental part of the rests and provided with circular points 0', corresponding with the sockets at c. This circular point of the side rails on each side rests in the socket when the bed'is closed, and when being opened the bottom of the side rails from this point turns down and rests up: on the rests, instead of having a cleat attached These curved upper edges pro to the side of the rails for this purpose.

Supporting the side rails by placing their lower edges on segmental rests projecting from the uprights as distinguished from supporting them by cleats or other devices fastened to and projecting from their sides and placed on similar rests, obviates without other construction or aid the objectionable open space caused by such projections between the frames at the sides when the bed is closed. Heretofore this space between the frames has been covered or filled by pieces secured to the edge or inside of the uprights.

The circular points of the side rails, on which the bed turns when beginning to open, are raised by the segments from the sockets to the position shown in Fig. 1 when the opening is done, and during the opening the folcrum which raises the weights and head-board shifts from the socket to the point 0, and vice versa in closing, thus giving the operator the greatest advantage atthebeginningoftheopening or closing of the bed where the greatest exertion would otherwise be required. The connection of the sliding head-board with the folding frame is also made to shift similar to the fulcrum onwhich the said frame operates. This connection is made by racks and toothed segments on the head-board and side rails.

d designates the racks, which are attached to the head-board, one on each side, and project out from the bottom of the head-board in line with or within the vertical plane of the side rails d designates the toothed segments, which are attached to the side rails or set into recesses therein when the space between the frames is not sufficient to allow them to project beyond the side rails under the racks, so that their teeth will mesh into each other. Two results are secured by this arrangement. The head-board is moved back to the rear part of the upright frame when the bed is closed, so

as to give more room, and forward so as to bring the head-board near the front edge of the uprights when opened, to give it the appearance of an ordinary bed. The weight of the head-board is also thereby rested on the extreme end of the swinging frame when the bed is open, so as to afford its greatest assistance in closing thebed, and when the bed is closed the weight of the head-board is rested on the opposite end of the rack and segment, which on which the bed turns when commencing to open, and so offers its least resistance to the opening. The head-board is moved back and forth at the top correspondingly with the bottom by oblique tracks or ways D on the inside of the uprights, which ways pass between a roller, d, and a lug, d, on the head-board and move the top of the head-board back and forward as it is moved up or down on the inclined ways. The same backward and forward movement may be effected by a diagonal slot or groove in the uprights and a pin or lug on the head-board made to fit and slide up and down therein.

Another feature of the invention is the link E and its arrangement with the rests 0, point 0', and folding-bar F, which is employed to fold and unfold the foot-legs G, which are connected and operate in the usual manner. The links E (there being one on each side) are pivoted at e to the rests O, and at e to the center of the circular points 0 of the side rails, and extended up from this last named point to the end e of the bars F, and pivoted thereto..

By this arrangement of parts the links perform the double office of preventing the side rails from slipping on the rests and of operating the bars F to folda-nd unfold the legs G as the bed is opened and closed. These links are curved between the points 6 e, in order to bring them below the board H, which is made to occupy a horizontal position in the bed (represented in the drawings) to give it the ap pearance of a book-case. If this board is inclined upward toward the last named of these points, the link may be made straight between them and be bent up from point e to the end of bar F. I

The link E differs from thelevers H H of my former invention, shown in Patent No. 240,486, in being made of one piece instead of two with a flexible joint, and in having an angle or curve at e where it is pivoted to the side rail. In the case of the jointed levers the movement of the joint moves the rod or bar F, and in the case of the link with the curve at e the swinging of the link effects the result, and the part ,of the link between the points 6 e being with out a flexible joint serves to prevent the rail from slipping on the rest. The board H is hinged at t to the bottom of the folding frame and so serves as a hinged cover to the box J when the bed is closed.

L represents the counterbalancing-weights supported on the head end of the folding frame.

What I claim is- 1. In afolding bed, the combination of the upright frame with the sliding head-board and folding frame, the connection of the sliding head-board with the folding frame being substantially of the construction shown and described.

2. 'In a folding bed, the combination of the upright frame with the sliding head-board and folding frame, the connections between the 4 FITZ ALLAN B. WILLIAMS.

Witnesses:

JOHN H. WHIPPLE, J os. W. MERRIAM. 

